St Clement Church Community Trinity 2 Service 26.6.22
Good morning to you as we celebrate our 2nd Sunday of Trinity Service.
I hope you’ve all had a good week and have not been affected by the rail strike chaos! We are holding a Eucharist in our church building at 10.15, this Service of the Word is for those who aren’t able to be with us in person, but will be worshipping with us in spirit.
Much love and prayers and may Christ’s love sustain you always.
Rev Di and family xx
Let us pray;
O Lord, open our eyes to see what is beautiful, open our minds to know what is true, and our hearts to seek what is good, for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Hymn: ‘Ye Holy Angels Bright’
Our prayers of Penitence
Let us examine our lives in the light of St Paul’s teaching about the nature of love:
‘Love is patient, love is kind, is not envious, or boastful, or arrogant or rude. Does not insist on its own way, is not irritable, or resentful and does not rejoice in wrongdoing…..’
We confess to God that our attitudes and behaviour often fall short of these standards:
Most merciful God, we confess that we have not loved you with our whole heart, nor have we loved our neighbours as ourselves.
We ask that in you forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God.
Amen.
Let us pray our Collect for the 2nd Sunday after Trinity
Faithful Creator, whose love and mercy never fails: deepen our faithfulness to you and to your living Word, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Readings:
1 Kings 19.15-16, 19-21
Galatians 5.1, 13-25
Hymn: ‘Be Thou My Vision’
Gospel: Luke 9.51-62
(Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke
Response: ‘Glory to you O Lord.’)
When the days drew near for him to be taken up, Jesus set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; but they did not receive him, because his face was set towards Jerusalem.
When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, ‘Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?’
But he turned and rebuked them. Then they went on to another village.
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’
To another he said, ‘Follow me.’ But he said, ‘Lord, first let me go and bury my father.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.’
Another said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.’ Jesus said to him, ‘No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’
(This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.)
Reflection
Let’s consider today why sometimes, when Jesus calls, we don’t pick up the phone. We might be here this morning thinking something like this; ‘I’m not a bad person, in fact, I’m a pretty good person, I don’t have a criminal record, I help people whenever I can, I go to church pretty often, even in the summer when I’d rather be out in the garden or on the beach, and I give to charitable causes.
I’m not a bad person. In fact, I’m a pretty good person, and because I am, Jesus has the sense not to ask me to do anything different than what I’m doing now. Besides, Jesus must be pretty busy trying to bring home people who have gone astray, like murderers, drug dealers, and the like.’
So, with that mind-set we might be thinking; ‘The very good life that I live must amount to an insurance policy that Jesus isn’t going to ask me to do something different than what I’m doing now. In fact he might even send me a thank-you note for my good behaviour.’
Now, I don’t like to burst that bubble folks, but such thinking is wrong.
Jesus has the annoying habit of calling people whether their life is a moral disaster or a moral example, and this is because he’s interested in something besides improving bad people’s behaviour. What interests him is more personal; he wants all people, regardless of their behaviour, to become his disciples.
Sometimes this calls for setting aside behaviour that’s unethical, even criminal, the stuff of dramatic conversion stories, like the murderer or drug dealer coming to faith and living a different life.
But for other people, answering the call to discipleship means setting aside what is good, safe and known, like people of faith learning to live in their church community differently than before, their old ways being scrambled.
It’s a fact that Jesus asserts his priority not only over the worst in human experience, but over the rest of us as well.
And today’s Gospel offers us insight on this disconcerting process, Jesus is interviewing candidates for discipleship.
One candidate asks permission to return home and bury his father. The father may be dead already, but more likely, the candidate wants to put off discipleship until he has seen has father through old age and into the cemetery.
In any case, Jesus doesn’t give permission, discipleship has priority, somebody else must care for this father and bury him, the one invited to discipleship must follow.
Another candidate makes a similar, but less dramatic appeal; ‘Let me first say farewell to those at home.’ Again, Jesus gives the thumbs-down, this person needs to hit the discipleship road too, and do so immediately.
What Jesus says at this point sounds perplexing; ‘No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the Kingdom of God.’
But let’s consider the context of those words; fields in those times were tilled by a man steering a plough pulled by a bullock, and the farmer would have watched a fixed point ahead in order to plough a straight line.
Looking back when ploughing would have caused the farmer and animal to swerve, resulting in a crooked furrow, and the furrow would remain there for the entire season, making the farmer look foolish. To look back while on the discipleship road is no less foolish.
But whoever, wherever we are, it’s easy to come up with excuses, and some excuses sound profoundly moral. But what we call love and duty is sometimes what Jesus knows to be the voice of addiction speaking, our fear of a different future, our refusal to change so that we may truly live.
We may not want to change our way of life, especially our church life, because it might mean following Christ in a new way, and there’s no doubt that it’s unsettling to follow Christ in a culture that might not satisfy our addiction to the same old thing.
Today I’ve talked about excuses, most of us, when Jesus calls, can produce one excuse or another, I’m an expert at it! And we all have our favourites. But when Jesus calls us to discipleship his voice is louder and more persistent than any of them.
The time for excuses and looking back has come to an end, we must now look forward. At the Diocesan Synod meeting on Monday evening the vote taken to accept the Deanery’s On the Way plans was passed by 36 for, with 3 against.
We are now called to embrace the forthcoming new style of ministry, St Clement will become part of the Truro Mission Area, in the Truro Benefice, merging with Kenwyn and St Allen, Kea and St John’s.
The extended Truro Mission Area will include All Saints Highertown, The Waterside Benefice of Devoran, Feock and Perranaworthal, and St Mary’s at the Cathedral.
St George’s have opted out and seek plan an independent future under the Bishop of Ebbsfleet.
The Deanery also includes The Probus and Roseland Mission Areas.
It is intended that each Church in the Deanery will have its own Focal Minister, either ordained or Lay, and each church will have its own Leadership Team.
The Churches of the Truro Benefice, of which we will be a part, will come together as one church for Truro, with one PCC, our finances will be merged too.
I will remain here as your Focal Minister, and with Liz, will head the Leadership Team. Both Liz and I will be expected to work across The Truro Mission Area as and when needed.
I urge you to visit the Powder Deanery Website on line where you can read the Deanery Plan in full.
So, it’s time to pick up the phone and answer, because if we wish to fulfil our ministry in this place, we must lay aside our excuses and hit our new journey on the discipleship road ahead of us, becoming part of the wider family of one united church.
I have spoken to you today in the name of the God who works all the time with excuse makers of every sort because here on earth there’s nobody else to work with: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Hymn: ‘O Jesus I have Promised’
Affirmation of our faith
Let us declare our faith in God:
We believe and trust in God the Father, source of all being and life, the one for whom we exist. We believe and trust in God the Son, who took our human nature, died for us and rose again. We believe and trust in God the Holy Spirit, who gives life to the people of God and makes Christ known in the world. This is the faith of the Church. This is our faith.
We believe and trust in one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Our Intercessions are written by Helen Dunbar
Prayers
In the power of the spirit and in union with Christ, let us pray to the Father. Almighty God, we ask you to hear our prayers for the Church, the world and people in particular need.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
We pray for the homeless and hungry and the wanderers, who have no place to rest. May all people in need, who have no place to rest find kindness and generosity wherever they may go. Lord, be merciful to all who find doors shut against them and give blessings to all who reach out to those in need.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Dear Lord bless and guide our own much loved Revd. Di, who continues with a relentless work schedule; please help her with the many and varied problems she has to deal with during her working day. We pray for our church here at St Clement; help us to grow in faith, to respect the beliefs of others, to celebrate what we have in common and to accept our differences.
We pray for the churches in Powder Deanery as the Transforming Mission initiative begins to develop with the implementation of the ‘On The Way’ process. Please Lord, give your help and guidance to all involved with this work.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
We pray for the healing among nations; for food where there is hunger; for freedom where there is oppression; for joy where there is pain; that your love may bring peace to all. We pray that the leaders of all nations will work together to meet the challenges facing our world.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
We pray for our families and friends and ask your blessing on all young people as they finish the school year and embark on their holidays and recover from several weeks of exams. Dear Lord help us as we go about our daily lives in these quite challenging times, still trying to strike a balance between freedom and staying safe.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Show us, oh God, how to love not only the animals, birds, and all green and growing things, but the soil, air and water by which we live, so that we may not exploit or pollute them for our own profit or convenience.
Help us to cherish these necessities for our survival, and guide those in authority to ensure that the human spirit may not be starved in pursuit of material comfort and wealth.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Bless and guide Elizabeth our Queen; give wisdom to all in authority; and direct this and every nation in the ways of justice and peace; that, men may honour one another and seek the common good.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Merciful God we pray for all who suffer in body, mind or spirit and for those who care for them. We pray for those who are known to us; we bring before you Ken and Diane, Rupert and Linda, Barry and Sandra, Margaret, Dot and Terry, Ollie and his family, Jenny, Brian, Gavin, Paul and Jan, and Jane & family.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Loving God, we pray for those saddened by the death of someone close and dear to them, either recently or at this time of year; we pray for Tony who recently passed away, a much-loved husband and father, who is also sadly missed by his friends and colleagues.
Lord in your mercy; hear our prayer
Rejoicing in the fellowship of St Clement and St Andrew,
Merciful Father Accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ
Amen
Gathering our prayers and praises into one, let us pray with confidence as Jesus taught us;
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever.
Amen.
Hymn: ‘We have a Gospel to Proclaim’
The Peace
We are the body of Christ. In the one Spirit we were all baptised into one body. Let us then pursue all that makes for peace and build up our common life. May the peace of God be always with us.
Amen.
Blessing
May God the Holy Trinity make us strong in faith and love, defend us on every side and guide us in truth and peace. And may the presence of God watch over us, the power of God protect us, those whom we love, and may we never forget that wherever we are, God is with us always, to the end of the age.
Amen.